


One More Day

by Capstar98



Category: Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Brain Damage, Car Accidents, Gen, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Has A Heart
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-08-20
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-19 06:42:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20326792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Capstar98/pseuds/Capstar98
Summary: Somehow each new hurt stings just as bad as the last. Peter knows this better than most. But Tony will be there.(Aka May gets in a car accident and Tony takes Peter in)





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I know this trope is overdone, but I couldn’t resist.   
This story takes place in that magical time between Homecoming and Infinity War.

Tony’s shoes tapped on the floors as he walked quickly down the bright halls of the hospital. When he turned around the corner to the waiting room, he paused. Peter was sitting alone by the windows, his hands clasped in front of him and his head leaning over his lap. Tony could see blood on his shirt and his hands. 

He took a deep breath. He didn’t have time to pause. Peter needed him. 

The kid didn’t react as he drew nearer, or when he sat down next to him. Tony moved to put a hand on his shoulder, but changed his mind at the last second and pulled it back. “Peter?” he said quietly. 

There was no indication that Peter had heard him.

“Peter, I’m here,” he said. “I’m gonna go find out what’s going on, okay? Peter?” 

Peter still wasn’t looking up at him. Was something wrong with him? Had he hit his head?

“Are you okay? Are you hurt? Peter.” Tony said his name again firmly, and the kid’s face finally snapped to look at him. 

His eyes were bloodshot, but he wasn’t crying. It looked more like he didn’t have the energy to react. Tony thought he must still be in shock. 

He spoke softly. “Hey, Pete. I heard what happened. You’re not alone, do you hear me? I’m going to get what I can from the doctors, and I’ll tell you everything I hear. But first,” he looked down at the blood on Peter’s hands. “You need to clean yourself up, okay? Go wash your hands, and I’ll find you a new shirt.” 

Peter just stared at him, his eyes empty, but Tony saw his hands tighten. 

“Peter, did you hear what I said?”

He didn’t move for another moment, but then Tony saw him give a small nod. 

“Good,” he said. “Okay. Um, I’ll be back in a minute. I’m gonna figure out what’s going on.”

Another almost imperceptible nod. He took that as reassurance enough for the time being, and strode off to find someone who could tell him what was happening.

When he had seen his phone ringing a call from Ned Leeds during dessert, he almost hadn’t picked up. Then he remembered the last time that Ned had gone calling them, and his hand had gone to his phone. 

Ned’s words -- a verbal waterfall of anxious, confused explanation, immediately sent his heart rate flying, and before he even registered was he was doing, he was out of the restaurant, in the car and heading to the hospital. He hadn’t gotten much information, but what he knew was that Peter’s aunt had been hurt -- that she had been in a car crash and had gone through the windshield. And that Peter had been there to see it -- he had been right next to it. 

“Excuse me,” he said to the old lady at the reception desk. She looked up at him. “I’m looking for information on May Parker.”

“May Parker…” the woman repeated slowly, typing in her computer. She scrolled around for a moment. “Yes, here. May Parker was admitted to the E.R. about a half an hour ago, after a car accident. She’s currently in surgery.” 

Tony took a breath. At least that meant she was still alive. “What -- how can I get updates on what’s happening? I don’t know how serious this all is.”

The woman smiled kindly. Tony knew she meant well, but it still felt patronizing. “A nurse liaison should come by to update you soon, but I’ll let them know that you’d like information as soon as possible.” 

Tony nodded. “Thank you. Thanks.” As he walked back to find Peter, he noticed the people around him staring. He was used to having eyes on him in public, but it felt wrong in this situation. Couldn’t people just know to leave him alone?

Peter hadn’t moved from where he had left him, and Tony felt his chest tighten in sympathy. The kid looked awful, and he shouldn’t have had to be here. Hadn’t the world taken enough from him already? 

Tony was not a religious man, but he found himself praying to whatever deity might be up there to make sure May made it through this alive. 

He ignored the twinge in his knee as he squatted down in front of Peter and slowly put a hand on his knee. “Peter, look at me.”

Peter looked up at him. 

He spoke deliberately. “Someone will be by soon to tell us what’s happening. But right now I need you to focus. Okay? Let’s get you to the bathroom and wash your hands.” 

Peter nodded, his eyes still blank. It was kinda freaking him out, seeing Peter like this. He understood that Peter was in shock, but it was such a contrast to the kid’s normal energetic personality. 

He pulled Peter to his feet slowly, and the two of them walked to the bathroom. Moving seemed to shake him from being so numb, but instead he started trembling. “You’re okay,” he said softly, even though it obviously wasn’t true. “You’re okay.”

Peter managed to wash the blood off himself, though he paused when he saw the water staining red as it ran down the drain. He was shaking harder than ever, his breaths coming faster. 

Tony’s eyes widened. He knew from experience what was happening here, and that he needed to stop it before it got any further. He grabbed Peter by the shoulders and spun the kid to face him. 

Peter’s eyes were wide and scared. 

“Peter,” he said firmly. “You’re okay. We’re in the hospital. You gotta focus on the things around you, okay? You can feel your feet on the floor, right? You can feel my hands on your shoulders?” He squeezed just to make sure. 

Peter was nodding. His breathing slowed, and finally, he spoke: “Y--yeah. I’m -- I’m okay.”

Tony’s heart constricted. “That’s right, kid. You’re okay. Stay with me now, yeah?” 

Peter just shook his head slowly. “May. Mr. Stark, May is --” 

He nodded reassuringly. “I know, buddy. She’s in surgery right now. I’m not sure what’s going on but we’ll hear from someone soon. Just don’t go numb on me again. You need to stay focused.” 

“O--Okay.”

They walked back over to the waiting room and sat down. Tony desperately wanted to find Peter a clean shirt, but he was scared of missing whoever would come by to give them an update. 

As it was, a lady in purple scrubs walked into the room ten minutes later. “Family of May Parker?” 

Tony shot up out of his chair and pulled Peter with him. The kid moved slowly beside him. “Right here,” he said. 

The nurse told them to follow her, and they walked into an empty room along the hall. “My name’s Tracy,” she said. Her voice was soft, but certain. “I have some news for you about May. How is it that you’re related?”

“Uh, this is her nephew,” Tony replied, his heart beating fast with anxiety. “And I -- I’m a friend.”

She nodded. “Okay. Well, I can tell you that May is still being operated on. She was in a car accident, and sustained multiple lacerations and two broken bones. She’s a fighter, and they’re expecting that she’ll make it through surgery.” 

Tony took a deep breath, relief flooding his body. That sounded relatively positive, considering. But when the nurse spoke again his anxiety returned. 

“However, you should know that the crash caused her to go through the windshield, and she suffered a significant head injury. There’s no reason to make assumptions at this point, but you should be prepared for complications associated with that.” Tracy looked between the two of them. “Do you understand?” 

Tony nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, we understand.” 

Tracy smiled softly. “I can’t give you an exact timetable, but May should be in surgery for another few hours as they attend to her injuries. I’ll be back regularly to update you, okay?” 

* * *

The wait was agonizing, and Tony couldn’t imagine how it must’ve felt for Peter. He had gotten a fresh shirt for him at the gift shop, so he wasn’t covered in blood anymore, but he still looked like a zombie. He’d barely spoken, or even moved. But Tony had no idea what to say here -- how to comfort someone in this situation. So he didn’t say much of anything, either.

Like she said, Tracy came back around every half an hour to give them updates on what was happening. The information didn’t change much from the first time she had spoken to them, but it was still reassuring to hear that May was still alive. 

Eventually, Tony left Peter’s side to call Pepper. She was currently down in DC for a conference, so she couldn’t get there anytime soon, but he needed her support. She picked up after the second ring. “ _ Hey, Tony. How’d your dinner go? _ ” 

For a moment he felt that he couldn’t speak. “Pep…” 

She picked up on his anxiety. “ _ Tony? What’s wrong? What’s happened? _ ”

He sighed. “I’m at the hospital.”

“ _ What? _ ” 

His head dipped towards his chest. “Peter’s aunt May was in a car accident.”

There was horrified silence, and then Pepper’s voice shook. “ _ Oh, god.” _

“She’s in surgery now. They’re saying she’ll live,” he added quickly. “But it still doesn’t look good. We’ll know more once they’re finished, but it sounds like they’re saying she could have brain damage.” 

“ _ Oh, my god, _ ” she repeated. “ _ That’s horrible. Is Peter there with you? _ ” 

“Yeah. He was there when it happened,” he said roughly. “He’s not hurt -- he was out of the way. But he was there to see it.” 

“ _ Oh, Peter, _ ” Pepper sounded horrified. “ _ God, Tony. What are you going to do? _ ” 

He took a shaky breath. “Well, I’m waiting here with him until she gets out of surgery.”

“ _ But, honey… Think about it. This isn’t going to be fixed tonight. _ ”

Tony frowned. “What are you saying?” 

She sighed. “ _ Tony, I’m saying Peter should stay with us. Until May is back on her feet. _ ” 

“God, I didn’t even think… But --” He blinked. “Is that -- Is that legal?”

“ _ Don’t worry about any of that -- I’ll work it out. Just focus on Peter. He must be so scared. _ ” 

He nodded. “Okay.” 

“ _ Oh, I wish I could be there. Should I send Happy out to you? He could help. _ ” 

“Yeah. That’s a good idea. Thanks. I love you.” 

_ “I love you, too, Tony. Call me with updates, okay?” _

“Okay. Bye.” He tucked his phone away in his pocket and went back to the waiting room. 

Peter was sitting with his head leaning up against the wall. Thankfully he had shaken the numbness and shock that he had when Tony first came in, but he was still sullen, his eyes dull. He hadn’t seen him cry. 

“You okay, bud?” he asked, taking his seat next to Peter. It felt like a stupid question as soon as it had left his mouth. 

“I hate waiting,” Peter replied. “It feels like we’ve been sitting here forever.”

“I know. But the nurse said it wouldn’t be too much longer. Then we’ll get the full update from the surgeon.” 

“Yeah, I heard her too,” Peter snapped, his gaze flitting to the window. The sun had almost set outside. 

Tony blinked at the anger in his tone, but he knew it wasn’t because of him. He only looked at Peter for a moment before leaning back in his own chair. 

“Why are you still here, anyway?” Peter was looking at him now, a frown on his face. 

Tony shot him a confused glance. “What?”

“Why are you even still here?” he repeated. “You can leave. I’m fine.” 

He shook his head. “I’m here for you, Peter.”

Peter’s face was twisted. “Well, I’m not the one that needs help. May is. I’m fine, so you can leave.”

Tony raised an eyebrow, but instead of getting up only leaned further into his chair. Peter was upset and angry at the situation, and probably at himself. “Nope. You’re not getting rid of me so easy, kid. Not to mention I’m here for May, too. And I’m sure she wouldn’t want me to leave you here alone.” 

Peter huffed and looked away, but didn’t say anything more. 

Another half hour later, they heard May’s name over the intercom, and the front desk directed them to a room nearby. After five minutes a man in blue scrubs and a surgical cap walked in. 

He shook hands with both of them and introduced himself. “I’m Dr. Caldwell, May Parker’s attending surgeon.” He paused. “Are you -- Tony Stark?” 

Tony raised an eyebrow and nodded. 

The doctor coughed. “Right. And your name?”

“Peter.” 

He nodded. “Alright, well I’d like to tell you May’s current situation. She arrived here with lacerations and puncture wounds to her arms and chest, as well as a broken leg and collarbone. We removed the foreign bodies and managed to close up the wounds. Additionally, she broke a few ribs, and one of them punctured her lung. This caused what is called a tension pneumothorax, a condition where air builds up in the chest cavity and obstructs blood flow and breathing. We were able to treat this by inserting a chest tube that releases the pressure. Are you following me so far?” 

“Yeah,” Tony said. “What else? The nurse mentioned she had a head injury.” 

“Right. That is what’s most concerning us. From going through the windshield, May suffered what’s called a traumatic brain injury. Her brain began to swell, and in order to treat that we were forced to perform a craniotomy. This means we created a small opening in her skull to offset the swelling and for the removal of the clotted blood.” 

Tony looked over at Peter. He was pale and still. “Is she gonna be alright?” the kid asked, his voice small. 

Without thinking, he brought his hand up to put on Peter’s back. 

Dr. Connors’ answer didn’t sound promising. “Unfortunately, at this point it’s hard to tell what long term effects this injury will have. However, I must say it’s highly possible that she will be unconscious for an extended period of time, and may even fall into a coma.”

If it was possible, Peter lost even more color at that. 

“We’ll be testing and monitoring her closely over the next twelve hours. After that time I should have more definitive answers for you. But you should prepare yourself for that eventuality.” 

Tony nodded. He was outwardly calm, but inside his thoughts were spinning. This was awful. She was alive. But what if she never woke up again? A coma? Those were serious. 

“Do you have any questions for me right now?” Dr. Caldwell said. 

“Uh, what happens now?” Tony asked. “What are you going to do for her?” 

“Well, we’ll be doing a number of tests to determine if she is in fact comatose. Besides that, at the moment there’s no need to do any more surgically, so we’ll provide her with medication and monitor her progress.”

“Can I…” Peter hesitated. “Can I see her?” 

Dr. Caldwell gave him a kind smile. “Right now May is in the recovery room. This means we’ll be watching her closely to make sure there’s no complications from the surgery. Unfortunately you can’t visit her in there, but in two hours she’ll be moved to a room in the ICU. You’ll be able to see her then.”

The kid nodded slowly. 

“Alright. Well, we’ll continue to keep you updated, and let you know as soon as you can see her.” He stood and shook their hands again. 

“Thank you,” Tony said. 

Once the doctor was gone, Peter started trembling again. Tony rubbed his back in what he hoped was a soothing way.

“I’m sorry this is happening, Pete,” he said softly. “But it’ll be okay. And I’m not going anywhere.” 

And when Peter looked up at him, Tony saw that he had finally started crying. “Mr. Stark,” he said desperately. Before Tony could react, he had an armful of sobbing teenager. Once he had blinked away his shock, he wrapped his arms around the kid. 

“It’ll be okay,” he said, with as much confidence as he could muster. “It’ll be okay.” 

He hoped desperately that he was right. 


	2. Chapter 2

Happy arrived a little later with a few bags of fast food, and Tony met him at the door.

“Thanks for coming,” Tony said, taking a bag. 

“No problem,” Happy replied. “Anything for May and the kid. Can you tell me what’s going on?” 

Slowly Tony described the situation, repeating what Dr. Caldwell had told them as best as he could. 

Happy looked devastated to hear the news about May. “God, this is awful. Will she wake up?” 

He shook his head. “They didn’t give us a time table. But honestly, they don’t sound very optimistic. I guess we’ll have to wait for them to have more information.”

Happy took a shaky breath. “Well, we should get this food to Peter. He probably needs it more than you. I can’t imagine how he’s feeling right now.” 

“Yeah, he needs it. Whether or not he’ll actually eat it is another thing,” he replied. 

The two of them walked over to where Peter was sitting. 

“Hey, Pete,” Happy said. “I brought dinner.” He placed one of the bags in Peter’s hands. 

After Peter had finished crying, he’d become quiet again. Now, he said only a small, “Thank you.” 

“Eat up,” Tony said, pulling a burger out of his own bag. “It might make you feel better.” 

The next few hours as they waited for May to be moved to the ICU somehow passed mercifully quickly compared to waiting during her surgery. It was nice to know exactly how long they had to wait, anyway. 

Peter picked at his food, but Tony noticed that he didn’t really eat anything. Well, at least he wasn’t still staring off into the middle distance anymore. 

When the time came, Happy stayed behind in the waiting room and a nurse named Marissa led him and Peter to May’s bed in the ICU. Tony moved to step inside, but she stopped outside the door. 

“Alright,” Marissa said. “There’s a few things you need to know before going in. First, you’ll only be able to stay for fifteen minutes. She’s in delicate state right now, and the doctors will need as much access to her as they can. The two of you can go in together, but don’t crowd too closely around her bed. It’s better to go up one at a time. Do you understand?” 

Both of them nodded. Tony looked at Peter. The kid’s face looked like it was set in stone. 

“I also want to tell you about what you’ll see when you get in there. May has been in a terrible accident, and it’s likely she’ll look a little different to how you normally see her. There’ll be tubes and wires attached to her that are monitoring and delivering medication. This stuff can look scary, but it’s all there to help her, okay?” She looked between the two of them. 

When she got the confirmation again that they were listening, she continued, “There’s a few things in particular that I should warn you about. The first is on her head. You heard from Dr. Caldwell that May had a craniotomy? So, on the side of her skull you’ll see that some of her hair is shaved, and there is a line of sutures from where the surgical incision was. There’s also some equipment attached to her head. This looks scary, but what it does is monitor the pressure inside her brain. It’s not hurting her.”

Tony felt overwhelmed with all of the information. And there was more. 

“Moving down to her chest, you’ll see a small chest tube. This is to help treat her punctured lung, as it allows air to escape her chest cavity. Again, this device is helping her, so don’t disturb it.”

Peter’s face had grown pale again. 

Marissa continued, “Finally, the doctors had to intubate May. This means you’ll see a tube going down her throat. This looks scary, but what it’s doing is helping her to breathe.” She paused. “Okay, do you have any questions about anything I’ve said?” 

“No,” Tony forced out.

“Great. You can go inside and see her now.” She opened the door, and the two of them walked in. 

Peter’s steps stuttered beside him as they got their first glimpse of May. 

Somehow, even after all of the nurse’s warnings, Tony didn’t expect to see her like this. Honestly, she looked dead. Her skin was pale and covered in bruises. Her leg was covered in a cast. Various wires connected to her chest, and IVs went down into her arms. He could only see a portion of the chest tube, but that was enough to set his teeth on edge. Machines beeped around them. 

But what was worst was her head. Her face was slack and her mouth was pulled to the side by the breathing tube. Not much of her hair was shaved -- just a thin line travelling around her ear. But the stitches looked awful, and reminded him of what was happening underneath. It was weird as well to see the monitoring device he knew went down into her brain. 

He put a hand on Peter’s shoulder. “It’s okay, Pete,” he said, even though he knew it wasn’t. 

Peter stepped away from his hand and towards the bed, hesitating for a moment before gently grabbing his aunt’s hand. 

Tony quickly grabbed a chair and moved it over so that the kid could sit next to her. 

When Peter spoke, it felt like Tony was intruding in a private moment. He went as far into the corner of the room as he could, but he could still hear Peter’s soft voice over the sounds of the machines.

“Hi May,” he said. “It’s Peter. I--I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Tony saw tears running down his face again. Not the desperate ones from earlier, but quiet ones this time. “Please wake up,” Peter continued. “I can’t… just please wake up, okay?” 

Tony’s heart broke a little more at the quietly desperate words.

* * *

Fifteen minutes later, the nurse came in and brought them back outside the room.

“Just so you understand,” Marissa said, “May will be here at least a few days to a week, if not longer, depending on the prognosis.”

“Okay,” Tony replied. “We understand.” 

“It’s unlikely we’ll have any more information for you tonight. You’ll be able to visit her for fifteen minutes every hour.” She flashed Peter a soft look. “I know you want to stay by her side. However, there’s no current danger of her condition worsening, and it might be better to go somewhere that you can get some rest. At least for a few hours.” 

“Thank you,” Tony said when Peter didn’t reply. 

“Her doctor will give you a full update in the morning.” With that she gave them another one of those kind yet condescending smiles and walked off down the hall. 

As they moved back to the waiting room, Tony spoke to Peter. “I know you don’t want to go, but I think she’s right. We should leave for a little while, and come back in the morning. What do you think?” 

Peter shrugged. “I guess.” 

Tony frowned. He hadn’t expected Peter to give in so fast. “Really? Okay, well, why don’t we stay another hour so you can see May again, and then we’ll go.” 

“Yeah, okay.” 

Despite how weird Peter was acting, Tony was glad he wasn’t fighting him. It was around 10 PM at that point, and there was no way that any of them would be able to get any sleep there. Well, it was pretty unlikely that they would get any sleep anywhere, but at least they could pretend if they left the hospital. 

May looked the same when they went back an hour later, and Tony couldn’t tell if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Maybe it was neither. From what he gathered from the nurse, they weren’t expecting her status to change through the night. That probably didn’t mean anything good, considering where she was. But when he told Peter he tried to spin it in a positive light. 

After they were pushed out of the room they gathered their things and Tony walked close behind Peter as they left the building. 

It was dark outside, and relatively quiet. The moon shone faintly over the parking lot. 

Peter didn’t say a word as they travelled to the car and got in. Since Happy had come here in another car, he was taking that one and meeting them back at Peter’s apartment. He wished they could go back to the compound, but it was too far for tonight, and it was probably better for Pete to be somewhere familiar. 

They pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street, lights slowly passing by their windows. “You have your keys, right?” Tony asked. 

“Yeah,” Peter responded shortly.

He looked over at the kid. He was leaned up against the window, watching the street roll by. Tony opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. He wasn’t sure if talking would help or hurt. 

Peter decided for him. “What’s going to happen?” he asked quietly. 

“I don’t know,” Tony answered honestly. “But I’m sure we’ll hear more tomorrow.” 

“I mean, to me,” he added. “There’s no one else. Where do I go?” 

Tony was confused. “We’re going back to your apartment. Me and Happy are gonna stay with you.”

“But she’s gone,” Peter said. 

Suddenly, Tony understood what he was trying to say, and had to pull the car over. “Peter,” he said firmly, “May isn’t dead. She’s alive. And she’s going to get better. Okay?” 

“No. It makes sense.”

Tony frowned. “What?”

Peter shook his head slowly. “Everyone leaves me. First my parents, and then Ben. And now May. I’m cursed, Mr. Stark. The people around me always die.” 

“No,” he said quickly. He felt his chest clench in sympathy. “Peter, no. You’re not cursed. You have had a lot of bad things happen to you. And I’m sorry you’ve had to deal with any of it. But it’s not your fault.”

Peter swallowed roughly. “Yes it is. You don’t understand.” 

Tony put a hand on his shoulder. “Peter, look at me,” he said firmly. Peter hesitated, but eventually turned his eyes to him. “What happened -- you are not to blame. I know what it is to lose people -- to have the people you love be hurt, and feel responsible.” His parents faces flashed in his mind, and he saw Rhodey unconscious in that field in Germany. “But the truth is that sometimes you get dealt a bad hand. Then when you lose, it feels like it’s on you. But the world didn’t give you the chance to begin with. So listen to me when I say: you are not to blame, okay?” 

Peter took a shaky breath and hurriedly wiped his eyes. “Y--yeah.”

Tony knew that it would take time for Peter to believe him. But for now, he could support him as best he could.

* * *

The next morning they got back to the hospital early. Tony had managed to sleep for a few hours. Peter said he had gotten to sleep, but from the bags under his eyes Tony was doubtful.

Happy dropped them off at the front and went to go park the car. 

They wandered inside and found their way to the nurses’ station in the ICU. The man behind the desk told them that May was currently out of her room for a CT scan, but would be back soon. He also told them that her doctor would have an update for them soon. 

As they waited for them to bring May back, Tony’s thoughts wandered. Mostly he was concerned for Peter, but he couldn’t help thinking about SI and his business with S.H.I.E.L.D. He knew that he would have to get back to it soon. He could probably do most things from wherever he needed to. But hopefully May would wake up soon and this whole thing could go back to normal. 

A voice in the back of his head told him that was a futile thing to hope. This was going to last a while. 

A half hour later, nurses brought May back to her room. They were let in to see her for their fifteen minutes, and Tony noted that she looked pretty much the same as she had the night before. He wondered if they were keeping her sedated, or if she was unconscious.

Happy arrived, coffee in hand. “How is it in there?” he asked. 

Tony shrugged. “Looks like not much has changed. Which could be good, I guess. We’ll see.” 

“How’s the kid?” 

Peter was sitting down the hall, looking at his phone. Hopefully he wasn’t googling depressing facts about traumatic brain injuries. 

“Well, I don’t think he’s doing so great,” he responded tensely. “But he has a pretty good reason to feel shitty.” 

Happy frowned at him. “Hey, don’t take it out on me. I’m just trying to help, here.” 

Tony sighed. “Yeah, I know. I’m sorry. This whole thing’s just got me on edge. I wish Pepper was here. She’s better at this kind of stuff.”

“She’ll be back from D.C. tomorrow,” Happy replied. “And you’re doing alright. This would be hard for anyone.” 

“Yeah, I know.” He looked back over at Peter. “I feel like he’s sick of me. You wanna go keep him company?” 

Happy raised his eyebrows. “Sure, if you want. But I don’t think that kid could get sick of you.” 

It felt like a long wait before the doctor appeared to update them. He brought Peter and Tony into another room and they sat down together. 

“Good morning,” Dr. Caldwell said. 

_ Not really,  _ Tony thought. But he only said, “Morning. You have news for us?”

“Well, I can say that May made it through the night with no further complications,” he replied. 

Tony was relieved for a moment -- that is, until he noticed the doctor’s hesitation. “What is it?” he asked, willing his voice not to betray the anxiety that he was feeling. 

Caldwell looked at Peter, then back up at him. He looked sympathetic. “While May’s condition hasn’t worsened, it hasn’t improved either. We were hoping for to show signs of waking, since she was taken off the sedatives a little after midnight last night.” 

Well, this was headed nowhere good. 

The doctor’s voice had a finality to it. “This morning we conducted a number of tests that measured brain activity and pain response, and unfortunately we have determined that May is in a comatose state.”

God, no. 

Tony saw Peter’s hands clench into fists out of the corner of his eye. 

Before either of them could say anything, Caldwell continued. “I know that this is a frightening prognosis, so let me explain what will happen from here.” 

“Okay,” Tony said. “Explain.” 

“The truth is that there is no specific approach to waking someone from a coma. In this scenario, what May needs most is time. Time for her body and her brain to heal itself. There is no sure way to estimate how long her coma will last, and what state she will be in if she comes out of it. You should understand that she could wake up fine. But she could also wake up with loss of motor function or memories, or not wake up at all.” 

Tony looked at Peter. His jaw was clenched and his face was screwed up like he was trying not to cry. “What can we do for her?” he asked. 

“Well, Mr. Stark, we will supply medicine that will hopefully help the swelling in her brain, but unfortunately this is really a waiting game.” Dr. Caldwell looked down at the papers in his hands and back up again. “However, I would say that I expect May to regain consciousness. There’s no guarantee,” he quickly warned, “but other patients with a similar level of brain injury have recovered. This next week should provide us with some answers. If she doesn’t show signs of waking after that time, her chances of recovery drop significantly.”

“Okay,” Tony said, taking a deep breath. “Well, that gives us a timetable at least.” 

“Right. This is a scary situation, but at this point there is still hope for a full recovery. We’ll know more as time passes. Hopefully she’ll wake much sooner than the end of the week. But even if she does wake soon, this will likely still be an extended process. But we can talk about that as the situation progresses.”

“Right. Well, thank you.”

“Thanks,” Peter said quietly. 

Damn it. 

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know what you think! More soon!


End file.
